Economic Forecast Event 2025

Maryland's multi-family real estate market in 2025 will likely reflect broader national trends, but with nuances specific to Maryland’s regional dynamics, housing demand, and economic conditions. Several factors will influence the outlook for multi-family properties, including demographic shifts, interest rates, federal government activity, and local economic conditions.

Join us to hear from the best and brightest minds in our industry!

8:00am - 9:00am: Check-in and breakfast

9:00am-9:50am: Guest Speaker Aniraban Basu, Sage Policy Group, Inc. 

Anirban Basu is Chairman & CEO of Sage Policy Group, Inc., an economic and policy consulting firm in Baltimore, MD. He is one of the Mid-Atlantic region’s most recognizable economists in part because of his consulting work on behalf of such clients as prominent developers, bankers, brokerage houses, energy suppliers, and law firms.  

Dr. Basu currently serves on the boards of the University of Maryland School of Law, St. Mary’s College, the University of Maryland Medical Center, the University System of Maryland Foundation, the Lyric Opera House and the Archdiocese of Baltimore School System. He is also on Truist Bank’s advisory board.

Dr. Basu earned his B.S. in Foreign Service at Georgetown University. He earned his master’s in public policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, and his master’s in economics from the University of Maryland, College Park. He acquired his Juris Doctor at the University of Maryland School of Law. He completed his doctoral work at University of Maryland, Baltimore County with a concentration in health economics.

10:00am-10:50am Operational 2025 Forecast Panel

Panelists:

Steve Margerum, CPM Principal,  Cove Property Management (Moderator)

Stephen Margerum, CPM® earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree from James Madison University in 2002, majoring in Marketing and Information Systems. He joined Equity Management Inc. in 2004, starting as a Leasing Consultant before advancing to Property Manager and ultimately Regional Property Manager. During his tenure, he became the Regional Manager for a Tennessee-based value-add portfolio. Upon returning to Maryland, Stephen managed a portfolio of more than 2,200 apartment units across Prince George’s County and Baltimore County.  Currently, Stephen oversees the daily operations for all properties under Cove Property Management. His responsibilities include day-to-day property management, business development, acquisitions and dispositions, and the execution of capital improvement and value-add renovation programs. Additionally, Stephen has spearheaded the development of over 50,000 square feet of residential units and commercial space in-house.

Melissa Gambuto President, WPM Real Estate Management

Melissa Gambuto is President of WPM’s Multifamily Real Estate Division and has 25 years of experience in the multifamily residential industry. As part of the company’s strategic succession planning, she joined WPM in 2019 as Regional Property Manager and served as Director of Operations before taking over as Division President.  Prior to WPM, Melissa’s career included various property management and senior leadership positions with companies such as Bozzuto, Greystar and Kettler. She has managed a wide variety of property types, sizes and locations, giving her a breadth of experience and industry knowledge across all aspects of multifamily management.

Patrick Butler, Director of Operations, Murn Properties

Patrick joined Murn in 2021 as Director of Operations for the property management division and swiftly advanced to the role of Senior Vice President. In this capacity, Patrick is pivotal in overseeing the operations and financial performance across Murn’s management portfolio, ensuring both efficiency and profitability.

Terry Cotton, Vice President, Southern Management

Terry Cotton embarked on his career with Southern Management in 1991 as a credit counselor at Southview. Displaying an innate aptitude for leadership, he quickly grew his skillset and learned everything he could about property management, earning him the role of assistant property manager in 1992. Terry was promoted to property manager at Marlborough House the very next year. Since becoming a member of the Southern family, Terry has been instrumental in nurturing and elevating talent. He has promoted over 40 team members, with more than half of them stepping into the role of property managers themselves. Not only does Terry embody the Three Rs and Three Ms, but his influence and commitment to excellence contribute to Southern’s exceptional reputation within the multifamily real estate market. 

Dennis Dietz, Senior Vice President, Apartment Services

Chief Operating Officer/Executive VP at Apartment Services, Inc.

11:00am-11:50am Transaction 2025 Forecast Panel

Panelists:

Steve Margerum, Principal, Cove Property Management (Moderator)

Mike Muldowney, Senior Vice President, CBRE

Michael Muldowney joined CBRE in April 1996, specializing in multifamily property sales and concentrating on the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC and the District of Columbia. His market knowledge expands throughout the greater Washington-Baltimore region. Since joining the CBRE Mid-Atlantic Multifamily Investment Properties Team, he has participated in the process of obtaining exclusive listings for and/or sales aggregating over $54 billion. Mr. Muldowney was one of the top eight Multifamily Producers nationally between 2002 and 2008. In 1998 he was the Regional “Rookie of the Year.”

Justin Verner, President, Harborstone

Justin is the founder and President of Harbor Stone Advisors (HSA). He leads the organization with an open, honest, and collaborative approach while maintaining the firm’s core vision: expertise, results and integrity. Verner’s unwavering focus on his speciality (multifamily investment sales), client first approach, continual improvement and long term, advisory philosophy have been instrumental in his career.

Haley Donato , Senior Vice President, Asset Management & Finance
Executive Committee Member

Haley currently serves as the Senior Vice President of Asset Management & Finance. In her role, Haley directs the company’s asset management, disposition, and capital markets teams for both multifamily and retail. During her tenure at CRC, Haley has built and grown the teams that cover those core functions and in more recent years Haley has taken on oversight of CRC’s data science and business analytics platform and the firm’s insurance programs. Haley sits on CRC’s Investment Committee and Executive Committee.  Haley holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from Santa Clara University and her Masters in Real Estate from Johns Hopkins University.

Martin Fayer , Senior Managing Director NewPoint Real Estate Capital - Multifamily Originations